The Most Extravagant Truck in History That Nobody Wanted to Produce ▶ Steinwinter Supercargo 2040 

As a US truck driver, this truck looks like an absolute nightmare to drive in adverse weather, as the spray from other motorists would completely blind you. Not to mention forward visibility being about zilch...

You failed to mention that the cargo box could be opened at both ends allowing the driver to approach difficult docks forward. I seem to recall reading about this truck in either Popular Mechanics and/or Overdrive magazines. I think one of the reasons for its ultimate failure was driver safety. In the event of an accident the driver had virtually no frontal protection and there was a real chance of being crushed under the cargo box. Drivers did not like it at all.

The future was more futuristic in the past. It's a shame...

It has potential merit in low speed applications with good traffic control. With modern camera technology, it could be the ultimate dock donkey.

For a highway long distance vehicle it fails straight away from a drive point of view. Due to its low height you can't perceive traffic ahead at distance. I.e making braking distances so short that at average speed you would have little change to brake in time with other road vehicles.

I do remember seeing it on the 80's USA TV show "The Highwayman"

I feel like they need to make it like the cybertruck where all the wheels steer and cameras can be used for more visibility these days. There is definitely a way to make this idea work in the present day

I don’t think the actual Steinwinter was used on The Highwayman. That truck I believe was a heavily modified Peterbuilt, and was much narrower than the Steinwinter. You can really tell by the windscreen. The Highwayman truck was a Hollywood chop job inspired by this truck. The other truck in the show pulls a lot from the Ford and GM concept Turbine trucks of the 60’s.

As a retired OTR American trucker. No friggin way. 1st thing I thought of, was how are you going to see to back. Cant imagine Wyoming winds in that thing. Definitely designed by people with zero knowledge of trucking. Great video :) and content.

As soon as I saw the thumbnail I knew that driver visibility would be its downfall. Having owned both a class A motor home and a Miata, I can appreciate the difference in perspective.

I know where it is, but the owner dont sell it. It a shame, that this truck will be died... With best regards from Germany

How did Steinwinter not get sued by Ferrari for that logo?!

I want to see the motorhome version !

If the sports cars I've owned/driven are any indication, that seating position will be absolute *murder* on your lower back after just a couple of hours. I've found (for my back at least) it doesn't matter how well-designed the seat is: if my legs are out in front of me, it's going to suck. Conversely, I can drive an old pickup with a crappy cloth bench seat all day. I think this would be quite literally crippling for someone trying to drive it professionally. Truckers have pretty high rates of back problems as it is. Between that and the obvious safety issues, I can see why it didn't take off. But it's cool!

Why do I remember an old movie with a vehicle like this in it.

Oooo, I think I remember this truck being included in one of those Quartets card games. Now I totally wanna drive one of those. Guess I'll have to apply at the nearest airport then lol.

Rather than a truck this would make a snazzy house.

Guessing the designers never heard of things like speed bumps, potholes, or snow.

RU-vid. The home of not being able to say Chassis, properly.

There used to be a TV show called "Science International: What Will They Think Of Next" and I remember seeing this truck featured on it.

When I was a truck mechanic at a Cummins Engine dealership/repair facility in the 70s, I think it was Fruehauf Trailers that designed one with a V-903 Cummins Engine. I't also went nowhere and I never heard of it again. I read about it in a Cummins Engine Company publication.

Driver : "I'm in danger." *chuckle

The sidekick's HighwayMan (1987) truck !!

Saw this in person when it toured the U.S. in the 1980’s. Pretty awesome to see going down the road.

I half remember this from a book about semi trucks I had as a small child. Glad it was real and not just in my head lol

This is like something you'd see in airports and only airports.

Interestingly, there was already another German "Supercargo" Truck very similar to the Steinwinter in the 1960s, it was built by Büssing from Brunswick (they got acquired by MAN in 1971, the lion badge is the Brunswick Lion, I heard they wanted to get rid of that because the factory in Brunswick is defunct for decades now, they're still in nearby Salzgitter, but the response to that was so negative that they kept it). But it wasn't a truck for trailers but a full flatbed truck instead, where the flatbed made the whole length of the vehicle. This construction was only possible through the under floor engine (the engine is mounted in the lower part of/under the frame, literally between the front and rear axle) and that engine concept itself was invented/developed at Büssing an patented in 1935.

Ty

It looks awesome! Impractical, but awesome! 😎

GM's 1964 Bison concept truck has a very low forward control cab design with a short wheelbase.

Ever since I saw the truck, I thought it was absolutely cool. I would love to have one.

Oh, so THAT'S where the M577 Armored Personnel Carrier came from...

Perfect design for fully-autonomous semi trailer transport on highways and ports.

Cool concept. I wonder how it would hold up in crash tests

Used to see this in Fellbach back in the day when going to work... Was certainly different...

Well...One major advantage would be, in an accident, the drivers body would cushion the impact on the payload, insuring that nothing that was being hauled would be damaged.

Nowadays, field of vision can be enlarged by installing camera on top of upper part of the trailer.

I was a class 1 driver for 12 years. That cab looks comfy as but, very poor visibility unfortunately.

incredible prototype from volvo

I remember the Highway men, it was so cool back then.

It looks great

Never thought I'd see a cab-under truck 😂

1:18 So that’s where cybertruck came from!

I always thought it was a Ferrari truck because of the badge. It’s weird that it has the Cavalino. I’m surprised Ferrari didn’t send a cease-and-desist😂😂😂

Currently European trucks are using cameras as mirrors. Adding cameras in the front, on the top of the trailer for improved visibility could make it a hit in Europe.

This marvel can be adapted for a modern use: the fact the engine is placed just in front of the rear wheels let a huge place under a standard cabin with a standard configuration (a high cabin at the front of the vehicle). If the engine is no longer under the cabin, you can modify the cabin's configuration. You can rise the cockpit and the empty room under it can be used as a sleeper. If the bunk is no longer behind the driver, there's about 1 meter of empty space so, you can add a shower or something like that, to add comfort for the driver.

That forward swing and the less f9rward view then a mazda miata while waying 80k lbs is an absolute nightmare in every way. The truck by itself is cool, using it for a actual service vehicle is just a big no

Cool AF!

Probably didn’t have any sleeping facilities in it either? Presume they built several since I doubt the one in Highwaymen was turned completely back to standard after all those changes.

Definitely a concept worth dusting off. Cameras can be placed high with feed to cockpit, and engines are a lot better now.

I absolutely love y'all's videos. So many times i wish you made longer videos. Just so i don't have to stop watching. Especially after you started narrating them. My eyes are going & it was getting harder to read the videos. Regardless i love the content don't stop making them. I think we have the tech today to solve the problems this design faced in the 80's. I would love to see it be revived.

You Did Not mention Sooo Much Details, I Knoiw Where One Stands in germany Now, yestarday I Drove By It

The suspension on the cabin would have to be stiff to support the weight of the cargo.

I'd be concerned about a deer crash. But it does look so cool! That would inspire me to get my CDL😂

i could see it being a yard hopper getting the trailers ready in the yard

Modern technology could make it work, like cameras and better cooling system.

Featured in the Usborne Book of the Future from about 1980

At least one of the early versions of the Transporter Erector Loader trucks for the Minuteman missiles had a similar profile, with an extremely low cab under the long trailer containing the missile.

Clearly not recommended for long haul. Ports and airports look like best use case.

It should be brought back with today's tech

I can just see so many truckers accidentally ramming the front of the trailer into a building or something while turning.

I already have trouble seeing around high hedges in my sports car. More than once pulled in front of a vehicle because I couldn't see over an obstacle so I have to really lay on the accelerator to keep from causing an accident. Can't imagine how much worse visibility is in THAT monstrosity let alone how to recover from those situations when your 0 to 60 time is measured in minutes.

1:36 iki bentuk'e mobil aneh, weird desain but i like this.

I’m for one thing that this design actually is rather innovative and likely does and will have a resurgence of sorts. Yes, we’ve got the things like from Volvo, but as stated in your video, the things from Volvo that are being built and such are purely just for operation in places like large Seaports and stuff like that. But at the same time I would think trucks like this could be Remely useful. I think the only real thing that would need to be altered would be the simple fact that there would probably need to be cameras or sensors of some kind on it to alleviate the visibility problem. For one thing trucks like this or maybe calling it a “truck” doesn’t really work but vehicles like this. You definitely do have a place. I can certainly see the passenger coming into use simply as a essentially oversize long haul bus for traveling and such. After all accompany like Greyhound would probably jump at the opportunity to have a bus system like this, that would allow them to transport larger numbers of passengers. The cube van design specifically, the one where the trailer part or whatever you wanna call it is literally on top is definitely another interesting idea. The only thing that I would be concerned about would be the possibility of the unit being to top-heavy and therefore running the risk of it rolling onto its side. Either way vehicles like this definitely I feel could be useful. The only things that I think would need to change would be a combination of safety features and probably other kinds of regulations. But overall, I think they could work.

It's a interesting design i imagine it would make a great rv

That is a death trap. I shudder just thinking of what would happen to the driver as that slid into a mess of cars in a winter accident.

the logo looks very sporty I must say, surprised lawsuits never happened

I wonder about the actual height of the trailer 🤔 because in the eastern US it can’t be taller than 13’6” or 14’ in the west. I think this design would scare off most veteran drivers because they would like to be able to see from an elevated position. OTOH, you could have a high fwd facing camera and monitor, (not to mention rear cam). But that might not ever be legal because youre effectively “taking your eyes off the road” and driving by monitor. 🤔

Time ahead but these Truck will defintly Come one day

the overheating could be adressed by a one seater variant

I'm curious about the cab space.

I want to be able to see the line of cars ahead of me.. Visibility alone makes this the worst idea for a highway truck ever.

The low cabin design is also used in mining equipment.

yes the truck still exists. it is on the same place as the last 20 years. The owner (the inventor Steinwinter died in 2020) still wants to sell the idea, or at least the story.

👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

This thing was used in one episode of Night Man (1997)

Damals, vor etwa vierzig Jahren, gab es einen Artikel im PM Magazin darüber.

But could it get over a speed bump or speed mountain as some of them seem to be

How about showing where the take the loads. And mixing it up a little.

@3:34 : Just wow !

l'époque quand automobile et motorisation, rimaient avec passion.

That doesn't even look right 😂

Maybe with modern tech and the relocation of the radiator.

As a concept and a challenge to convention I like this *a lot.* There's good arguments for it *not* to be on the road (And I'm shocked the _Verkehrsamt_ authorised it's use on public highways) but there are many _off-road_ (e.g: Transit centre) applications where it could perform head and shoulders above a conventional tractor unit. 👍 But commenting as a cyclist brings me to the reason for why I do *not* think this'd be suitable on the road - At least not on roads shared with pedestrians and cyclists. I see enough people get caught out by the tail-swing of conventional HGVs as it is¹ but the front-swing of these could be even worse. In my country people crossing half the road then letting traffic pass before completing their crossing is quite common, and you *don't* want to be stood in the opposite lane if one of these is turning close to you. ⚠ (¹ - My tip: *Always* stop 2+ meters short of the tail-bar, and *always* site yourself where the driver can see you in their mirrors. Don't forget to check the number plate, and *never* _assume_ the driver will be sat on the same side of the vehicle as drivers in your country do. ⬅🇳🇱🚚🇬🇧➡👍)

Might be an interesting concept for self driving technology. If the "camera" is high up.

Taking a tight turn and the obtruding trailer hits a lamppost, no thanks...

To be able to drive a double semi is trick in itself and I’m sure you need plenty of hours behind the wheel to drag two trailers. I couldn’t imagine driving a cab over sports car dragging two trailers. (But I’d definitely try it) 🤪••👈

I think it's interesting concept but I can easily see visibility issues trying to back a semi truck up into a tight spot does a bigger semi truck actually has mirrors on there to where you're able to see what you're doing better and where exactly would me the driver sleep at on a 3-day Hall I don't see a sleeper cab in the truck

It was 1983 but look at the new electric trucks without a driver now, verry simular models from Volvo and Scania !!!

Lesson of the day: the Ferrari advisors should be occupied with the comfort of the driver, while the Mercedes advisors should be occupied with the functionality and safety of the vehicle. Managers that propose such ideas, there is a window wide open in the 20th floor.

wait.... I got to 7:20 and heard that they designed the bottom aerodynamically. They really looked at making the bottom aerodynamic when it's hauling a giant rectangle on top of it? Who were they fooling? Seriously, who?

This is basically the polar opposite of the International Harvester Sightliner. 😁

I used to drive bus with the seat as low as a car's one. I hated it.

The future we could have had

I want just the cab it's a supercar lorry

and your first line of defense is a collision is your feet. just like a VW bus

Reminds me of the Strick Cab Under. Electronics and cameras could take of most the problems that doomed it. There were concerns of poor driver visibility in traffic and that the driver might not feel if the rig was starting to tip over. A camera on a stick would take care of visibility and I am sure sensors could sound an alarm if the thing starts to tip.

It looks like only super short people could fit into this truck, and I am quite tall, 6' 7" or 201 centimeters.

Couldnt the cargo crush the cabin if it hit a big enough bump?

This truck was developed at the time because trucks were allowed to have a maximum length and they wanted to make the most of the loading area. However, the law was later changed and a maximum loading area was set, so this concept was obsolete and useless. There were also problems with cooling the engine, not to mention visibility in good and bad weather conditions.